| Undercover correspondent visits NDAC
Recently an undercover correspondent from
Diver Magazine Online (Divernet) came to visit the National Diving
& Activity Centre. His article is published on divernet.com
here> or can be read below and in the August edition of Diver.
 I've
always wanted to test an inland dive site's ability to manage a
diving incident but, as the Mystery Diver, I can't just call and
ask it to demonstrate its emergency procedures for me. However,
I had only just started my visit to the National Diving and Activity
Centre (NDAC) in Chepstow when the alarm was raised. A diver had
surfaced with a flooded drysuit. He was putting on a brave face,
but I could see that he was suffering from shock due to prolonged
immersion in cold water.
The attendants on the floating pontoon leapt
into action, got him out of the water, removed his drysuit and covered
him in blankets. Another attendant was already preparing a silver
heat-retaining blanket and calling for assistance from the centre.
From the moment the attendants were alerted to the time they handed
him over to colleagues, they did a superb job in keeping themselves
composed, and in reassuring the diver. Within a couple of minutes
the incident had been prevented from becoming a serious one.
 Thirty
minutes later I saw the diver at the centre, still suffering from
the effects of the cold, but looking well on the way to full recovery.
It was an impressive performance.
Under water, the visibility was somewhere in
the region of 8m, although divers I spoke to on the day told me
it can be much better. There's plenty to see at a variety of depths,
ranging from the statutory cars and gnomes to aircraft, military
vehicles and helicopters. For technical divers, there are depths
down to 76m.
While some UK inland dive centres have chosen
to invest in swanky-looking shops and training facilities instead
of spending money on the basics, the NDAC has clearly chosen to
focus on creating facilities that add value for all its visitors.
For example, the changing rooms and toilets are of a good quality,
and spotlessly clean. Welcome touches such as HSE advice on trip
and slip hazards have been placed on the inside walls, instead of
advertising. Just in case you wonder how clean the water is, there
is a chart with test results on the outside of one of the buildings.
At the time of my visit, it was almost good enough to drink!
The workshop and compressor area was well-kept
and tidy, with no queues (despite this being a busy day), and the
first aid station was clearly signposted.I found the food at the
takeaway-type grill to be reasonably priced and quite tasty. The
shop appears to specialise in stocking "spare stuff", and its employees
were very personable - during my visit, one of them was doing his
best to fix a customer's broken fin-strap.
 Outstanding
at managing emergencies, customer-focused, organised and, as one
diver I met put it: "This site has something for everyone." The
only fault? In the rest area there were lots of diving magazines,
but no DIVER!
Divernet.com
August 2008
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